Before starting to read the literary analyses of Virgin Soul's episodes, it's required to have previously watched them, as the analyses link events from the episodes by expanding on their details and how they were connected.
Virgin Soul is a love story written by master playwright Shizuka Oishi, directed by Keiichi Sato, and animated by MAPPA studio.
About Shizuka Ōishi
Born on September 15, 1951, in Sarugakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Ms. Shizuka Ōishi is a Japanese screenwriter, essayist, writer, and actress. With around 100 written works, she's acclaimed for being a master of the romance genre in Japan.
She was born and raised in Sundai-so, an inn in Surugadai, which was also a haven and hideaway for famous writers, and Ōishi's adoptive mother was the owner. This environment rich in creative writing nurtured her passion for Arts and Letters and gave her an education in the field from an early age.
In 1974, she graduated from the Faculty of Letters, Japan Women's University, Department of Japanese Literature.
Ms. Ōishi belongs to the agency NOTE and has worked on numerous love stories, including Second Virgin, a work that won her the Broadcast Woman Award in 2010 and the Tokyo Drama Award in 2011.
In 2017, Ms. Ōishi made her anime debut by writing the script for Shingeki no Bahamut VIRGIN SOUL after being recommended by her friend and composer Yoshihiro Ike to MAPPA studio producers Nobuhiro Takenaka and Manabu Ōtsuka. Both were looking for a master romance screenwriter, and Ms. Oishi met all criteria. They were very interested as she had never written a script for the anime and fantasy genre before since they wanted something different and consistent that could appeal to a new audience.
VIRGIN SOUL delicately written love story unique in its category for its strong focus on classic literary elements of drama, a gem and a delight for Literature and Performing Arts lovers.
Theatrical & Literary Elements in VIRGIN SOUL
Love and romance are present from the first episode to the last, as well as the identity game, which is key to understanding the play correctly.
There are another two recurrent themes, the basis of Charioce and Nina's romance, such as certainty and uncertainty —fate—, and decisions and consequences.
These four themes form the pillars of the story and from which the most decisive events emerge. All of them expanded in detail in the analysis of each episode.
Virgin Soul is a work of great interest for anyone involved in the field of literature because, unlike the vast majority of pieces of work in the world of Japanese animation, this one stands out for containing all the Renaissance, Victorian, and modern aspects of drama and stage. Ms. Oishi incorporates features of the classic European theater in her scripts that make her writing for a target audience who knows how to translate the stage language and understands how it works.
Dramatic language expresses feelings, emotions, and thoughts through graphic representations, actions, or behaviors that can be either incorrectly interpreted or incorrectly understood without prior knowledge of the theatrical field.
There's a relevant Shakespearean aspect in the tragic lovers in the style of Romeo and Juliet and the events around Nina and Charioce.
There are also supernatural influences such as curse breaking in the line of romantic works by Alexandre Dumas, such as in The Pale Lady or The Wolf's Leader, but with a sweeter ending than any of them, being more similar to a fairy tale.
It's necessary to know how to read each one of the literary devices surrounding certain characters to understand them and how they feel correctly, as in the case of Charioce XVII, a character impossible to appreciate without considering what he says through symbols, small actions, and gestures. The misinterpretation of any of those elements may lead viewers to think he's cold-hearted and not as passionate and pure as Nina. However, Charioce can be more intense, straightforward, and chaotic than her in terms of emotions and feelings, standing out for being the most complex character in the story.
Charioce is a tragic hero who experiences extreme feelings: a burning love and silent suffering because of his curse of death. And everything he doesn't say with words is expressed around him with classic theatrical elements.
Azazel is another character that cannot be understood without considering what he does with certain objects, such as the metal file Rita gives him to remove his neck shackle collar in episodes 16 and 18.
Azazel suffers in silence for having made bad decisions by assuming that others will do what he wants them to do. Azazel regrets what he did and doesn't blame anyone but himself. However, the viewers who just get carried away by his harsh words when he tells Nina that he never expected anything from her in episode 18 will fall into the mistake of thinking that Nina is selfish, when in fact, she's the most charitable and honest character of all.
At that moment, Azazel has no words to apologize to her, as he finds it hard to accept his own mistakes and prefers keeping Nina away from him so he won't involve her in anything dangerous again.
He expresses everything through how he evolves after freeing himself from the bonds of the past and forgiving himself when breaking the collar with the metal file.
Nina is a sweet and sincere character who expresses what she feels openly without the need for a more extensive explanation of her actions. She's a cheerful and optimistic peacemaker. Her friends' happiness is her own, just as her happiness is also that of others. Nina looks out for all those she cares about all the time.
As for her deeper interpretation, more attention should be paid to her when she hides her suffering from others, as she doesn't like others to see her in her moments of greatest weakness. In those moments, the same literary devices used in Charioce and Azazel come into play.
Beyond the characters, the supernatural aspect should be emphasized, which may go unnoticed by many viewers. It's a subtle aspect, but as important as any other of Virgin Soul's themes.
Of particular importance are the color red and the color blue.
The color red protects against death. It's the color of the chili and monster claw (cornicello) that Charioce gives Nina. And also that of the Red Dragon. One of them is an element that breaks Nina's curse of death (the monster claw), and the other breaks Charioce's curse (the Red Dragon).
In other words, red is love, and love breaks death curses. In Virgin Soul, love is the most powerful thing.
The blue light is associated with the presence of the archangel Michael, a character who acts in some episodes to help Jeanne or support their son El.
Furthermore, this same light defines El and the fallen gods in battle. Because of this reason, this color, many times, represents sacrifice. It's also present in the blue grotto where Charioce and Nina kiss, as their love is great that they would give their lives to protect the other.
To guide the viewer to a correct understanding of Virgin Soul, the following overview lists and explains the main themes of the work globally. Each of them developed in depth in the analyses of each episode composing the story. Check the index.
Transversal themes:
- Love
- Identity & Secrecy
- Decisions & Consequences
- Certainty & Uncertainty (Fate)
In Virgin Soul, there are two types of love: romantic and motherly, both pivotal in the story, as they influence the motivations of the most important characters.
- Romantic love:
- Couples in VIRGIN SOUL:
- Charioce & Nina
- Michael & Jeanne
- Kaisar & Rita
- Favaro & Amira
- Bacchus & Sofiel
- Charioce & Nina: Their love is true and passionate. Charioce and Nina recognize each other as soul mates as soon as they take each other's hands to arm wrestle. Their fate was to meet. They both feel a mysterious, romantic, and sexual connection from the beginning, symbolized through the red chili and cornicello, which reflects the fiery flames in their romance and a supernatural, underlying element, as it's a charm worn for protection from death and evil.
- Nina:
- Nina has trouble controlling her body when she sees handsome men given a trauma she developed after his father's death when she was six years old.
Her father was a handsome, kind, and protective dragon man, and Nina loved him dearly. His death affected her so much that, to forget the sadness she felt when she saw him die, her unconscious mind leads her to transform into the Red Dragon when she sees a man who reminds her of her father.
Pheromones affect her body, making her change form. But when she meets Charioce and falls in love with him, he becomes the only man capable of triggering her transformation into the Red Dragon, as evidenced in episode 13. And when Charioce confesses to her and kisses her in episode 17, Nina is finally capable of controlling her transformation at will.
Charioce possesses similar psychological characteristics to Nina's father. He isn't only very handsome and manly, but he's also gentle and protective of her. And in a messianic way, he's also everybody's savior, as he seeks to save the world from the threat of Bahamut, much like her father in wanting to protect their village from its fireballs.
Nina is naturally seductive due to her charisma, dragon-like beauty, and superhuman characteristics, which capture Charioce's attention immediately.
Just as Charioce's feelings for Nina are genuine and absolute, Nina's love for him is freeing and unconditional. Nina loves him even after he breaks her heart because she knows they're fated to be together and that Charioce never meant to hurt her but to protect her from death.
Understanding this, Nina proves to Charioce that she's his protection charm, as she's who delivers him from his fatal destiny by joining him to face Bahamut.
Love makes Nina stronger and gives Charioce the strength to believe that he will survive death and that he can change his destiny. - Charioce:
- Charioce is a more complex character regarding love, as no woman in the world has ever managed to catch his attention. Not until he meets Nina.Charioce is attracted to Nina even before she beats him in the arm wrestling match they have when they meet in episode 3. Nina is so pretty and strong that when he passes by Hipogriff, he looks at her and watches her beat the men because these characteristics catch his eye.He's handsome and strong like her, and no one has ever matched or surpassed him in strength. He's a natural-born hunter in every sense of the word.Charioce is attracted to Nina and her dragon form, the Red Dragon.While everyone fears the Red Dragon, Charioce is different and is infatuated by its beauty and magnificence. Aside from being a fated one, this peculiar attraction has a genetic explanation, easily deduced throughout the story by the sheer number of clues. Charioce has dragon ancestry on his mother's side. His mother, however, was neither a dragon nor a half-dragon because Charioce doesn't possess the ability to transform. Regardless, she certainly had an ancestral line in the dragon line. Charioce's golden eyes are the same as the Dragonfolk Village's elder; his strength is equal to Nina's; he possesses the wealth of a traditional dragon of legends and an immense life force that makes him capable of firing Dromos twice.Charioce is a sexually assertive and manly man. A gentleman. And although they hold hands in episode 3, Charioce leads Nina to intimate physical contact by asking her to dance in episode 6, teaching her steps she didn't know. Dancing is a very important action for Charioce, and he reserves it solely and exclusively for Nina. After their first dance, he confesses to her that he hasn't danced with anyone since he was a kid and that he had fun. This action takes on even greater significance when he's asked to show up at the ballroom at Waltz time in episode 19, unwillingly agreeing, as he doesn't want to dance with anyone other than Nina. Moreover, since he's king, he has never danced with any of the noblewomen who ask him to take them out dancing. But when he accepts Nina's invitation and dances with her, he impresses all the guests because they have never seen him do it before.A relevant moment in their relationship is when Nina asks him to embrace her in episode 13, and Charioce wraps her affectionately in his arms. In the same episode, Charioce removes his armor gauntlet to touch Nina in her dragon form and then holds her in his arms while she's naked when she returns to her human form. Charioce is her partner, regardless of whether she shows up before him as Nina or the Red Dragon.In episode 17, Charioce doesn't miss the opportunity to seduce her. He flirts with her by pulling her towards him to warn her that they're spies following them. He then takes her hand and drags her with him on an aimless escapade to a grotto, where he confesses his feelings to her.Charioce gives Nina a red chili-shaped (or monster claw) charm, a cornicello, to protect her from death.Charioce and Nina feel the same way about each other, although Charioce is more tragic and extreme in his love for her because he's so protective that he would rather break her heart than confess to her that he's destined to die. His biggest fear is Nina dying because of him, dragging her to his fatal fate. However, his fear comes true when he thinks she died because he ordered his soldiers to kill the Red Dragon. When that happens, Charioce loses his will to live and accepts his fate as punishment for having caused the death of the woman he loves.Charioce believes he doesn't deserve forgiveness even when he learns that Nina is alive, being a tragic character who's only released from his fate and guilt when Nina joins him to kill Bahamut, as she tells him that she won't give up on their lives and love.
- Jeanne & Michael
- Their love is spiritual and supernatural.Michael is dead, but his soul is immortal. He watches over Jeanne at all times, as she tells Nina while they're in the healing hot springs of Dragonfolk Village.Depending on the moment of the story, the blue light represents Michael's presence or El's. Michael is present to help Jeanne at crucial moments, such as when she breaks from prison.Jeanne is a devotee of St. Michael, and he loves her. While Jeanne says in episode 14 that she never saw Michael in a romantic-sexual way, she describes him as a gentleman, which speaks volumes about how she really feels about him even though there was never a romance between them like those between Charioce and Nina or Favaro and Amira, as divine contact for gods is what physical contact is to humans.Michael is more direct about his feelings for Jeanne, as he loves her so much that, in answer to her prayers, he gives her a son with an important mission: to bring peace to the world.
- Kaisar & Rita
- Rita is in love with Kaisar and waits for him to be romantic toward her. However, unlike the other male characters in Virgin Soul, Kaisar is less vocal about his feelings or doesn't dwell on them much. Rita is the one who takes the initiative in their relationship and expresses more frequently how she feels about him, waiting for Kaisar to realize that she's in love with him.Despite all this, Kaisar does seem to have an idea that Rita likes him. And there are hints that Kaisar has feelings for her and reciprocates her love, as shown in episodes 5, 13, 23, and 24.Kaisar trusts Rita more than anyone else, inviting her to a café so he can talk to her when he doesn't know what to do about following Charioce's order while wanting to be true to his own beliefs regarding the coexistence of different species. Rita gets upset with him because she thought the invitation would be for a loving purpose.Despite how unaware he's regarding Rita's displays of affection, in episode 12, Favaro is who tells him directly that his mechanical hand is explosive because Rita designed it that way in case he was in trouble, as she cares about him.In episode 13, Kaisar allows her to escape with Jeanne and Nina, staying on the ground and acting as bait to be apprehended by the royal army. Rita asks him if he does this because he's worried about Favaro, but Kaisar corrects her and tells her no.This is a reply that can be interpreted as being concerned about her and her friends, but since it has a special focus on Rita, it points out that he's more worried about her.During episode 16, it's seen how Rita always worries about Kaisar by sending Rocky to him to defend himself against Azazel in the coliseum.In episode 23, Rita helps Kaisar get to Charioce's ship, having already anticipated what he was going to do.When Kaisar sacrifices himself, he and Rita hold hands, an important action in Virgin Soul, as it represents the love between soul mates.Although Rita loses Kaisar, she soon after turns him into a zombie, becoming equal to her.
- Favaro & Amira
- It's a tragic love that remains latent even though Favaro believes Amira is dead. She's the love of his life, and he cannot forget her.Favaro regrets sacrificing her. Nevertheless, he regains hope of being with her when Amira sends him her dagger, and Nina gives him the message she sent with her while she was in Bahamut's light for a moment.Favaro knowing what it's like to love someone hits it off with Nina and manages to understand things from Charioce's point of view, being a key character for him and Nina to be together.
- Bacchus & Sofiel
- Bacchus has been interested in Sofiel since they worked together in The Land of the Gods, but Sofiel doesn't realize that Bacchus likes her until she notices they're more alike than she thought when she finds herself leaving her home to help Jeanne on the surface.
- Motherly love:
- Nina and her mother
- Charioce and Clarice
- El/Mugaro and Jeanne
- Nina and her mother:
- Nina loves her mother very much. So much so that she sends her several letters throughout the story. All of them with the purpose to tell her how she's doing and the things that have happened to her since she was in Anatae. After all, her great motivation for going to Anatae was to make some money to give her a better life, something that wasn't possible for her in her village because it was very poor.
- Charioce and Clarice:
- Charioce is another character who became who he is because of his love for his mother, even though she died ten years ago.His great motivation to kill Bahamut comes from his love for her. Bahamut took her life, leaving Charioce completely alone when he was 15. He lost someone precious to him and doesn't want others to lose the people they love either because he knows the pain.His mother was his only family since his father never recognized him as his son.Charioce lived with his mother in poverty. However, his life changed when he ascended to the throne after being chosen because of his exceptional physical characteristics, superior to those of an ordinary human and similar to those of Nina.Charioce loves his mother so much that he even sneaks out of the royal castle to head to the city cemetery and visit her grave regularly. Just as Nina writes letters to her mother to tell her what has happened, Charioce visits his mother's grave to tell her about what he has done and what's happening to him as he approaches his great goal.His mother is so influential that, unlike Nina's mother, who doesn't have a name, Charioce's does have one: Clarice Baviere, which is legible on the tombstone in episode 6.Interestingly, Charioce is only himself when he's in the cemetery and with Nina, to whom he reveals his real name: Chris.Both Nina and Clarice make him happy. Nina is everything to him once he meets her because she gives him back everything he lost when his mother died. His world makes sense again.
- El/Mugaro and Jeanne:
- El/Mugaro attacks Charioce because he wants to see his mother again, Jeanne D'Arc.While he was a gift from St. Michael to Jeanne as a token of his love, El was born with a divine mission only possible to accomplish thanks to his connection to his mother. El is a true messiah who will only achieve peace after a war. Being the son of Michael, he can bring peace after a conflict, fated to die to cause the wrath of Jeanne (a saint) and that of Azazel (a demon) against Charioce (a human).
Like love, the identity game is a theme that's present from episodes 1 to 24.
It's essential to understand that identities in Virgin Soul are relevant:
- Ordering the Red Dragon's death isn't the same as ordering Nina's.
- Ordering the Rag Demon's death isn't the same as ordering Azazel's.
- Ordering the Holy Child's/El's death isn't the same as ordering Mugaro's.
- The king introducing himself as Chris isn't the same as introducing himself as Charioce.
None of that is the same, even if the identities point to the same entity.
They're not the same entity until they merge into one. Until then, they're two completely different.
At different points in the story, each character merges their two sides into one. But even so, their identities still play a pivotal role, as not everyone becomes aware of both sides of those around them.
For example, in episode 6, Charioce only reveals to Nina that his real name is Chris, acquiring great importance because he opens his heart only to Nina, allowing her to know who he really is and not just a fearsome king, which is his persona, a mask he acquired to accomplish his goal.
Before being Charioce, he was Chris, and after he fulfills his mission as Charioce, he unifies Chris and Charioce into one. Although for Nina, his sides begin to merge from episode 11 and completely unify in episode 17, when Charioce stops wearing his glasses and turban, elements that hide that he's the king. He does that to show Nina that Chris and Charioce are both the same man she loves (aside from letting their spies know that he, the king, loves Nina and that they shouldn't harm her).
Nina is the only character in the story who knows that Charioce is Chris. Favaro only learns Charioce's real name because he hears Nina say it in episode 22. And yet he neither knows Chris nor gets to know him. Only Nina knows him.
For Charioce, Nina and the Red Dragon start to merge in episode 8, when he suspects Nina is the Red Dragon. Later, Nina unifies her sides for him when she asks him to embrace her in episode 13. From that moment on, Nina and the Red Dragon are the same in Charioce's eyes.
For the Onyx Task Force, the Red Dragon and Nina are the same entity as well, but only because they suspect and confirm they are.
Nina never directly reveals her identity to them. She only does it with people she trusts.
The leader of the Onyx Task Force refers to Nina as the Red Dragon and uses her dragon identity in his favor to force Charioce to give the order to kill her.
El has always been Mugaro to Azazel, but he shows himself as his old friend and El to him in episode 18, soon after he comes back to the surface from the Land of the Gods and Azazel escapes from Anatae's coliseum.
When Alessand learns that Mugaro is the Holy Child —El— he kills him while he is Mugaro. Mugaro never showed himself as El to Alessand. He was always Mugaro to him or even an ordinary child.
The Rag Demon gradually loses his secrecy as the episodes progress. Kaisar suspected from the beginning that it was Azazel. Nina learns who he really is as soon as he takes her to Rita in episode 2.
Soon after, Charioce discovers his true identity too, and so on. Finally, the crowd in Anatae's coliseum gets to see his face, and his identity is no longer a mystery to anyone.
All of the characters have made an important decision whose consequences impact their lives positively or negatively, whether they made it consciously or not.
And unlike most of them, Nina and Bacchus are among the few who make decisions they don't regret and that have positive repercussions on those around them.
- Nina:
- Nina makes decisions depending on what others need all the time, as she's altruistic by nature and only seeks the happiness of everyone. Her decisions always favor those around her, and she regrets and blames herself when she cannot do anything for them.At the end of the story, she makes a decision for herself and for the people she cares about, as when she chooses Charioce she chooses dying or surviving with him for his sake and the world. A world without the person she loves would be meaningless, just as Favaro describes the world without Amira. Nina chooses to save her lover's life and the world and doesn't regret it, even though she loses her voice in doing so. When she joins Charioce to face his destiny, she not only spares him from death but also saves the lives of all those she cares about. It's thanks to her that Charioce successfully ends Bahamut's threat and survives.
- Charioce:
- Charioce makes decisions based on what he feels and must do as king, something he defines as conviction and duty as a monarch, although that leads him to find himself trapped in dead-ends. In especial, once he meets Nina and falls in love with her.Charioce regrets having acted as a ruthless king, as his actions led gods and demons to hold such a grudge against him that he prevented them from seeing what he wanted to achieve by acting that way. He refused to see that what Kaisar repeatedly warned him about feeding his enemies' hate was true. The loss of vision he gradually experiences as he fires Dromos represents his refusal to see the truth.As Charioce realizes the evil he has done, he finds himself at small crossroads that keep him from turning back, such as when the Onyx Task Force leader forces him to order him to kill the Red Dragon, something he never wanted to do. Or like when he wants to leave his fatal destiny aside because he wants to be with Nina but can't. Or when he has no choice but to face all the rebels when he only wanted to face Bahamut and kill it.
- Azazel:
- Azazel is a character who makes rash and impulsive decisions without considering what others think or want. He drags others into his plans and waits for things to happen the way he wants them to, overlooking the wills of others.Azazel makes the mistake of dragging Nina into the conflict between demons and humans, getting his rebel comrades killed in battle by relying on the Red Dragon's power, and taking for granted that he had recruited Nina as one of his own. At the same time, his decision to attack the humans on the day of the Anatean parade ends up dragging Mugaro down and getting him captured by the gods. He regrets everything, achieving a moment in which he redeems himself by deciding to never again rely on the strength of others.
- Favaro:
- Favaro is another character who made a regrettable decision: having sacrificed his beloved Amira.Since he knows what it's like to live in a meaningless world, Favaro advises Nina to make a decision she'll never regret. Favaro doesn't want someone he holds dear to experience the same by losing a beloved one. Favaro would have liked having chosen to save Amira and the world, and not just the world.Favaro is an interesting character because, even though he doesn't want to get involved in anything, he always makes decisions according to what his heart dictates in Virgin Soul, showing that he doesn't want to be dishonest. Favaro helps Nina make the decision to save Charioce's life and the world so that she won't regret not risking everything, even her own life, in order to live in her ideal peaceful world with the man she loves after ending Bahamut's threat.
- Jeanne:
- Helping Sofiel is what helps her son's fate. Her decision causes her pain and suffering, but it's part of everything she must do so that all the conditions necessary for El to accomplish his mission to bring peace to the world.
- El/Mugaro:
- All the decisions he makes throughout the story are either for his mother or to help Azazel and Nina. These three characters are the only ones he trusts completely. And just like Nina, his intentions are always good, and he only seeks to be useful in some way when making a decision. Although being so trusting leads him to be a victim of Gabriel's manipulation, someone he stops trusting forever once he loses the battle against Charioce.
- Gabriel:
- She makes a mistake similar to Azazel's by involving El in her plans. She makes a bad decision by challenging Charioce and considering El her ace up her sleeve. Being so reckless costs the lives of much of her army, and El no longer trusts her.Like Azazel, Gabriel learns from her mistake. And when she attacks Charioce a second time, she's much more cautious, as she attacks him supported by the humans and rebel demons, being a combination of strength superior to what El alone had to offer.
- Kaisar:
- He's firm in his ideal of peace. His decision leads him to save the lives of Charioce and Azazel twice, losing his life the second time he acts as Charioce's shield.His death is not in vain, for with it, he manages to make Azazel and Jeanne understand that they'll never achieve peace through revenge. Furthermore, his death allows Charioce to fulfill his destiny.
- Rita:
- Rita is a sensible and protective female character who makes decisions based on what is needed by those she cares about, especially Kaisar. Like Nina and Bacchus, Rita has nothing to regret. She makes decisions based on what she feels and thinks it's okay, always considering the pros and cons.
- Bacchus:
- Bacchus left the Land of the Gods and all the privileges the place offered him because he fell in love with a human woman. And he never regretted having done so. The mortal woman made him happy, not his homeland.Bacchus, like Favaro, understands Nina and helps her after she makes the decision that makes her happy: saving Charioce's life.In addition, Bacchus is guided by intuition. He follows his heart, much like Nina and Favaro. However, his sixth sense is sharper than theirs, as he's rarely wrong.
- Sofiel:
- She tends to be measured and obey the rules. However, she eventually makes a decision based on what her heart dictates when she helps Jeanne search for El in the surface world, her decision being a positive one and helping her understand Bacchus better.
- Alessand:
- Alessand makes several consecutive negative decisions throughout the story, being the character who fares the worst, as he doesn't sincerely regret anything he did. He prefers to self-deceive himself and tell himself he did the right thing after killing Mugaro, never finding redemption.
- Dias:
- The worst decision he could have made was to have allowed the lack of discipline in Alessand. Dias is partly responsible for his subordinate's actions, since, being his vice-captain, it was his responsibility to make him more respectful of his superiors, a better soldier, and more sensible in his actions.
This is a theme that defines the romantic relationship between Nina and Charioce, as they never know if they'll see each other again, but fate brings them together again and again because they're soul mates.
Since Charioce can die at any moment, he cannot assure Nina that they'll see each other again, but it's a fact that he wants to see her again and dance with her.
As fate would have it, they meet, and their paths cross again on the day of the Anatean festival. Then they cross paths again the next day, and so on until Charioce finally confesses his feelings to her the day he goes to the cemetery to say goodbye to his mother because he has only some days left of life.
Fate's action is latent even though Charioce, at some point, is convinced they'll never see each other again, Nina appears before him again and again. His fate is to be saved by her and be with her after annihilating Bahamut together.
Charioce needs Nina to finish off Bahamut to save the world and survive, as the theme of fate foreshadows. That's why they always end up together no matter what Charioce does to keep Nina away from death.
Motifs
Motifs are concrete or abstract literary devices that repeat throughout the story and convey the main themes and ideas.
Each of these motifs is explained in depth in the analyses of each episode.
Keiichi Sato's direction is essential in some of these elements, as not all are as obvious as a cornicello.
Colors or whether an element is upright or tilted are details to pay attention to in conjunction with the script's unfolding of events.
- Red chili or Monster Claw pendant / Cornicello: It represents the passionate love between Charioce and Nina. Being spicy and red, it's the closest thing to a flame, connecting the power of the king and the Red Dragon into one.The red chili also has a supernatural connotation, as it has the power to protect the wearer from death and evil. The cornicello that Charioce gives Nina in episode 17 is a charm that he gives her as a token of his love and also as an amulet that will protect her from the curse of death he imposed on her by ordering the Onyx Task Force to kill the Red Dragon.This amulet is quite popular in Naples.
- Number 17: It's the number of death and is used to refer to a curse that falls between fated lovers, such as Charioce and Nina. At the same time, it defines them as virgin souls. The supernatural aspect of this number is covered in the analysis of episodes 1 and 17.
- Sword: This element represents Charioce's power and strength. But also announces either death or survival.When it's upright to the right, the character involved in the scene will survive, while when it's tilted and to the left, it announces certain death. The sword and the cross are used several times to convey the same idea, either life or death.
- Red Dragon: It represents Nina and her physical and supernatural power. The color red in Virgin Soul always has a relationship with love and the supernatural, as it repels death curses. When Nina falls in love with Charioce, she becomes her protection charm because her love frees him from the curse of the number 17.
- Ocarina: It's an object with dual meaning. It represents the friendship between Mugaro and Azazel and Mugaro's divine side —El— and his connection with the gods, as the ocarina is an instrument played to praise them.
- Left hand and left eye: This is a direct reference to death. Dromos takes the form of Charioce's left hand before shooting the gods, and Charioce's left arm turns black as he dies, and so does his left eye.Everything associated with the left side of the body has a negative and fatal connotation.
In El/Mugaro's case, it represents the supernatural, as his left eye is linked to his godly power. - Blindness: Refusal to see reality. Charioce not only becomes blind for having fired Dromos but because it's something metaphoric that represents how blind he was when he didn't see that his actions were feeding the hatred of gods and demons towards him.His blindness is also some kind of punishment since, at the end of the story, he cannot see Nina, whom he loves most in the world.
- Blue light / Color blue: Represents Michael's or El's presence and sacrifice. Ridwan explains to Nina and Jeanne that the blue lights in the hall of honors represent the gods fallen in battle. This light gets more relevance in episode 17, as it references how pure is Charioce's and Nina's love, as they're willing to give their lives for each other.
It's important to notice that Nina wears blue whenever there's a hint that she's ready to sacrifice herself for Charioce. In episode 17, her hair is dyed blue and in the same episode, she tells Charioce that she would support him in whatever he wants to accomplish regardless of that what could mean. Charioce knows that Nina would give her life for him.
In episode 19, Nina goes to the ball in Charioce's palace wearing blue. In that same episode, she prevents Favaro from killing Charioce, as she thinks he will do.
For explanations according to the events of each episode, refer to their respective analysis. There are many more details to repair and more contextualized for a better understanding of VIRGIN SOUL and its structuring.
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